‘The Curious Case of Natalia Grace’ Cracks Top 25 Programs for TV Watch-Time
Welcome to our weekly snapshot of TV by the numbers, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks for May 29 through June 4, with insights from Inscape, the currency-grade smart TV ACR data provider and data technology division of Vizio. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).
Amid a sports-heavy week of TV viewership, one new program managed to break through the noise: The Curious Case of Natalia Grace, which aired over the course of three nights on Investigation Discovery and captured 0.41% of all live, linear minutes watched during the week. The docuseries dives deep into the mystery behind a supposedly 6-year-old Ukrainian orphan adopted in 2010 by an Indiana couple who quickly started to believe she was actually an adult woman with spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia, a rare form of dwarfism. The network has a follow-up, Natalia Speaks, scheduled to air later this summer during which we presumably will hear her side of the story.
The first two games of the NBA finals between the Heat and Nuggets take first place for watch-time with 1.62%, while the earlier, final face-off of the conference finals between the Celtics and Heat come in at No. 6 (0.89% of minutes watched).
Other sports marching up the chart include PGA Tour golf, up to No. 3 from No. 18 previously, college baseball (from No. 7 to No. 4) and MLB (from No. 9 to No. 7).
Additionally, there are several new sporting events that make the ranking: NASCAR Cup Series captured 0.68% of watch-time, putting it at No. 10, while 2023 Roland-Garros Tennis takes No. 11 (0.67%) and the 2023 women’s college softball world series lands at No. 12 (0.67%).
Other week-over-week ranking newcomers include FBI (No. 19), Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives (No. 21), Ridiculousness (No.22) and Forensic Files (No. 23) — all benefitting from various rerun marathons.
Thanks in part to the NBA finals, ABC jumps to the top of the network chart with a 7.22% viewership share, while CBS holds steady at No. 2 with 6.26% of watch-time.
Additional insights around the most-watched networks from May 29 through June 4:
Aided by the NASCAR Cup Series, Fox rises up the ranking from fifth to fourth place week-over-week, with 4.27% of minutes watched.
Spurred on by Yellowstone reruns, Paramount Network moves up a notch to No. 18 with 1.34% of watch-time.
Bravo got yet another Vanderpump bump, moving from No. 23 to No. 21.
ESPN2 is the sole week-over-week ranking newcomer, landing at No. 24 with 1.00% of watch-time, fueled in part by college baseball.
